Jos Testimony in Act III of Baldwins Blues for Mister Charlie

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In act III of James Baldwins Blues for Mister Charlie, the court proceedings play a crucial role both in the plots development and the development of the characters. Two months after Richards death, Lyle is on trial, with the audience being presented with a picture of what happened. Jos perjured testimony is highly problematic as she blatantly lies in court by claiming that Richard attempted to assault her when they first met in the story. Besides, she mentions that Richard was under the influence of drugs, thus assassinating his character further. She says, [&] I didnt recognize him, I just knew he wasnt one of our colored people [&] He said all kinds of things, dirty things, like  well- just like I might have been a colored girl, thats what it sounded like to me. Just like some little colored girl he might have met on a street corner and wanted  wanted to  for a night! (Baldwin).

Jos testimony is an assassination of his character and is an issue that many people who cannot defend themselves experience. Hearsay should not have been accepted in court, and Jo should not have lied about Richard, especially because he was no longer alive. Her impressions about Richard perceiving her as a woman he wanted for a night are merely hers and do not have any tangible evidence to support such a point of view. Jos lying also shows that it could be easier for women to make negative comments about men and make suggestions about the latters sexual desires because of the history of systematic sexual abuse of women. Thus, it is easy for a woman to lie about an assault attempt because others are more likely to believe it. A question to consider is as follows: To what extent one can believe words about assault if another party cannot defend themselves?

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